


All I Want For Christmas

by Mookie



Series: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas [2]
Category: Peanuts
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-28
Updated: 2014-01-28
Packaged: 2018-01-10 09:55:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1158234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mookie/pseuds/Mookie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The snowflake had fallen again, the one that hung directly over his piano. He was tempted to toss it away, but he knew that Linus liked that one the best.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All I Want For Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lil_1337](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lil_1337/gifts).



The snowflake had fallen again, the one that hung directly over his piano. He was tempted to toss it away, but he knew that Linus liked that one the best. He was on a step stool, rehanging it on the hook dangling from the ceiling, when Linus came barging into the room.

That wasn't a good sign. While Linus' sister Lucy barged in no matter where she went, Linus tended to be more laid back and relaxed, and certainly more polite. He only acted this impulsively when something was on his mind.

Schroeder didn't have to wait to find out what that something was.

"She knows."

Schroeder jumped down from the stepstool and pushed it toward the wall with his foot, then sat at the piano and began playing the intro to _Heart and Soul._ He only ever played this song when Linus was here; it was the only thing Linus could play and it had become their thing from the first time he and Linus had been assigned to work on a history project together.

Linus sat down on the piano bench next to him and half-heartedly plunked out a few bars before his hands fell to his lap.

"How do you know she knows?" Schroeder asked, abandoning _Heart and Soul_ and beginning _Fur Elise._

Linus allowed him to play for two full minutes before he got up from the bench and began pacing agitatedly.

"Charlie Brown told me."

"And how does he know?"

"She saw us last night."

 _Fur Elise_ made way to the opening of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony played loudly, and Linus turned and scowled at him. "Schroeder! This is serious!"

Schroeder continued playing for another minute before turning from the piano.

"What _exactly_ does she know? I mean, did he say what exactly she saw?"

Linus pulled at his shirt collar. "Well, he said she saw you under the mistletoe."

Schroeder's brows wrinkled, then he remembered. "Oh. The Yule Ball."

"Glad it was such a memorable occasion for you," Linus snarked. "Not like it was a big deal or anything."

Schroeder pushed himself up off the bench and approached the other boy. "Just because you're freaking out, don't take it out on me," he said, poking him hard in the middle of his chest.

Linus knocked his arm away. "Please. I grew up with Lucy as an older sister. _This_ is how you do it." With that, he used both hands and shoved Schroeder as hard as he could, knocking him backwards and against the wall. In retaliation, Schroeder had managed to grab a fistful of Linus' shirt and pulled so that they ended up flush against each other.

"Stop," he hissed as Linus struggled to free himself. "Just...stop for a minute and let me think."

Linus was breathing heavily, palms pressed against the wall on either side of Schroeder's shoulders. A moment later he could feel something warm and wet against the side of his neck and he pushed away from the wall.

"You're supposed to be thinking!" he shouted, "not licking my neck!"

Schroeder slapped his hand over Linus' mouth. "Will you shut _up_ before my mom or dad come in here to find out what we're really doing?"

Linus stuck out his tongue and wriggled it against Schroeder's palm.

"Nice try," the blond said calmly. "But I've already had that in my mouth. Ow!" he cried out a split second later, shaking his hand. "I can't believe you _bit_ me!"

Despite his anxiety over the whole Lucy Situation, Linus couldn't help feeling a little smug. "That'll teach you."

"Oh, it taught me, all right," the older boy said, leaning forward. "It taught me there are much better ways to shut you up."

His intention was clear, and against his better judgement, Linus didn't put up a fight when Schroeder's mouth covered his own.

Good grief, this was exactly why he'd lost his head under the mistletoe last night.

"Schroeder," he mumbled around the other boy's tongue. " _Schroeder._ "

"Linus," Schroeder moaned in return.

It wasn't fair that it was always up to Linus to be the voice of reason when his friends were all at least a year older. He reluctantly broke the kiss and wiped the corners of his mouth with a thumb and forefinger. At least Schroeder was panting, too, and it took all of Linus' willpower not to look down to see if that kiss had affected Schroeder as strongly. He didn't want to give the wrong idea by ogling Schroeder's man parts. He just wasn't ready for things to go that far yet. He was still trying to reconcile his sexual orientation with the rest of the beliefs he'd grown up with, not to mention he'd just had his first kiss not even 24 hours ago.

He ran his fingers through his hair, causing a crackle of static. Schroeder's lips quirked and it was clear he was biting back a laugh.

"I don't know what to do," Linus admitted, sagging against the wall. "She's my sister."

"But I'm not into her that way."

"I thought you said you liked having her around."

"When I was ten!" Schroeder protested. "And I didn't say I liked her hanging around; it was more that I noticed when she wasn't and it was just really weird."

"You told Charlie Brown you felt like something was missing."

"Whatever," Schroeder huffed. He couldn't remember exactly what he'd said back then, and truthfully, he had grown so accustomed to her constant presence, the room had felt empty without her, as if she had become some sort of permanent fixture. He'd never felt for her what she so obviously wanted, and the only kiss he'd ever given her had been on the cheek. He'd never wanted to thrust his tongue in _her_ mouth the way he had with Linus last night. 

"So where does that leave us?" he asked. "It's not like she'd do the same for you."

"I know." Linus sounded completely miserable.

"Listen, Linus," Schroeder said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to do it where anyone could have seen us. I just wanted to do that for so long, and when I had the chance, I couldn't not take it."

Linus looked up. "How long?"

"Since last year, but you were kind of young."

"Yeah, sixteen. Really robbing the cradle there."

"I don't know! It was just...and you were...and I..."

Linus took pity on him and took Schroeder's advice to heart. He grabbed the front of Schroeder's shirt and kissed him. Their teeth clacked together and he winced. He wasn't as good at initiating these things as the older boy, but he'd always considered himself a fast learner.

"Listen," Schroeder said again, when they came up for air. "I'd better get back to playing piano or my mom is seriously going to come in here to see what we're up to. She's been kind of that way whenever I have any boy over, ever since I told them."

He sat back down and resumed playing. It wasn't Beethoven, and it wasn't _Heart and Soul_ , and Linus didn't think he'd ever heard the other boy play anything that wasn't one of those two things. He recognized the intro of the song but couldn't place it.

He sat down on the bench next to Schroeder and watched as the other boy's fingers moved over the keys. He'd always admired those hands - strong, graceful, and capable of creating magic. Unbidden, thoughts of other magic those fingers were capable of that had nothing to do with music room flit through his head, and the room felt much warmer. His face was hot, and he was certain it was beet red, but thankfully Schroeder's eyes were closed as he played, lost in the music. His eyelashes, so much darker than his hair, rested against his cheeks, and Linus was mesmerized.

The other boy was breathtakingly beautiful like this. Linus wasn't sure when he'd first noticed that, but after their kiss last night, and the one just moments ago, he wondered if he'd ever stop noticing.

By the time the song reached the chorus, Linus recognized it as one of his mother's favorite Christmas songs. He'd never have guessed that Schroeder would ever deign to learn music performed by a pop artist like Mariah Carey, but the boy was full of surprises. He swallowed around the lump in his throat and hesitantly put a hand on Schroeder's shoulder.

"Me, too," he said.

Schroeder grinned at him. "So...you don't need a lot for Christmas?"

Linus couldn't help but grin back. "Don't care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree."

"So we're OK, then?"

Linus nodded.

Schroeder gave him a mock frown. "And Lucy?"

"She signed up for the chess club. Charlie Brown said she has no interest in it, but she doesn't have to know that I know that. She should really enjoy the tryouts."

"Linus van Pelt, I had no idea you had such a devious mind."

"I learned from the master."

"Linus?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up."

Linus inched a little closer. "Make me."

Schroeder did so gladly.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was a Christmas 2012 gift fic for lil_1337, who requested a sequel to Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and who has more than repaid the favor with two lovely follow-up fics.


End file.
